Matt Donovan
Matthew G. "Matt" Donovan is a main character on , and a Special Guest Star on Season Three of The Originals. He is the son of Kelly Donovan and Peter Maxwell. He had an older sister Vicki Donovan, who was turned into a vampire, and was later killed because she was unable to control her blood lust. Matt is also the ex-boyfriend of Elena Gilbert, Caroline Forbes and Rebekah Mikaelson. He was born and raised in the town of Mystic Falls. After the death of Elena's parents, Elena broke up with Matt because she lost interest in him, although Matt still cares about Elena deeply and they've managed to maintain a good friendship. At the beginning of the series, Matt struggles with his sister, Vicki, because she was a drug user, but then she tragically dies. Later on he begins dating Caroline Forbes, and encourages her to become a more caring, kind and selfless young woman. However, Caroline soon breaks up with him after her transition into a vampire - in order to protect him. Upon learning about the existence of supernatural creatures, he begins to distance himself from the Mystic Falls Gang, but eventually starts to help his friends defeat enemies that cause terror in their hometown, and also fixes his friendship with Caroline. He also becomes a Medium for a short while like Jeremy Gilbert, although he could only see his sister's ghost. He began a brief relationship with Rebekah Mikaelson, and went to Europe with her at the end of Season Four, but they ended things before she had left Mystic Falls. In Season Five, he was possessed by a Traveler for a brief time, and was also involved with Nadia Petrova, Katherine's daughter. Nadia later compelled him to forget that Elena was possessed by Katherine. After Nadia's death, Matt help his friends deals with the destruction of The Other Side, with help from the witch twins - Olivia and Lucas Parker. Later on, he decide to become a deputy in Mystic Falls Police Department, and a vampire hunter. After Elena Gilbert falls into a magical, coma-like slumber being Kai Parker links her to Bonnie Bennett, Matt is forced to step up his game and eventually becomes the sheriff of Mystic Falls. During this time, Matt kicks out all vampires from the newly-human populated Mystic Falls. He later falls in love with his partner, Penny Ares. After Penny's death, Matt is set on getting revenge on the vampire who made Matt impulsively, but accidentally kill Penny. Matt is hellbent on getting his revenge on Stefan Salvatore for being involved in Penny's death. However, after a series of events that forces Matt to try and save Bonnie from being a bloodthirsty Supernatural Huntress, Matt is done fighting the war between humans and vampires. Matt decides to leave Mystic Falls and start a normal life outside the world of vampires. After Matt's exit from Mystic Falls, he went to look for his estrange father, Peter, and told him nothing of the supernatural creatures he had to deal with for the last seven years of his life. He is best friends with Jeremy Gilbert, Tyler Lockwood, Elena Gilbert, and Bonnie Bennett. He is also close friends with Caroline Forbes. Matt is a member of the Donovan Family. History Early History Matt was born in Mystic Falls. He is the son of Kelly Donovan and Peter Maxwell. He had an older sister, Vicki Donovan. Because Kelly and Miranda Gilbert, who was Elena's adoptive mother, were best friends since high school, Matt knew Elena since infancy, occasionally sharing a crib. They grew up together, being really close childhood friends, and began dating in their teenage years feeling they owed it to themselves to try. When Elena's parents died, she broke up with Matt because she needed time alone to figure out her feelings. Matt still hoped they could be together, but it was not likely to happen due to Elena's instant connection to the new student, Stefan Salvatore. It's something he might still mourn about. Throughout The Vampire Diaries Series |-|Season 1= |-|Season 2= |-|Season 3= |-|Season 4= |-|Season 5= |-|Season 6= |-|Season 7= |-|Season 8= In An Eternity of Misery, In Coming Home Was a Mistake, In Detoured On Some Random Backwoods Path to Hell, In The Next Time I Hurt Somebody, It Could Be You, Throughout The Originals Series |-|Season Three= In Behind the Black Horizon, he confronts Elijah and Finn who have arrived in Mystic Falls to find Freya. He aims his gun at them and he is made aware that there is another Mikaelson sister. When Elijah gives him two options, Matt suggests a third one and he helps them find Freya. He has his gun aimed at Lucien and Finn puts his hand on his gun and fires at Lucien, killing him temporarily. Lucien rises as a beast and knocks Matt unconscious. Personality Matt is everyone's definition of the "everyday man". Out of the characters, he is the most "normal"; he does not possess any supernatural attribute, nor any supernatural artifact that makes him stand out of the rest of humanity and he wants it to stay that way (at least until he was given the Gilbert Ring previously worn by Jeremy). He is, however, aware of the supernatural world and has more than had his fair share of skirmishes with them in the past. Matt is often seen by some people as a person who only cares about the sport, however, he is just the opposite, Matt is strong because he wants to protect his family and friends from the dangers that threaten them every day. As far as personality goes, Matt is loyal, headstrong, and down-to-earth. According to Vicki, Matt is the "golden child" of their family, with a good future ahead of him. These qualities make it very hard for other characters not to like him, and he has captured the hearts of several females throughout the series. Physical Appearance Matt is a very handsome young man, who stands at approximately 6 feet tall with baby blue eyes and short dark blonde hair. He has an attractive face and can be considered as the stereotypical football player in regards to his personality and physical looks. Matt's hairstyle over the seasons has remained similar, shortened with not much length except his hair was somewhat longer in the first season. On special occasions, Matt has been shown to gel his hair such as for the 60's Decade Dance, for a more formal style. His clothing sense is that of a typical teenager, for school as he played football, he used to wear the school Timberwolves jacket however usually wore a range of different colored t-shirts and jeans with boots or sneaker shoes. Lately, he has been wearing checkered button-down shirts with a t-shirt underneath or shirts with an unbuttoned collar. He also wears a heavy jacket with hoods or light weight jackets, both of which are usually a darkened color. Working at the Grill, Matt has a uniform which consists of a dark blue t-shirt and black trousers. On occasions, he regularly wears a dark tuxedo and trousers with a tie. Relationships Vicki Donovan Vicki is Matt's older sister, although it often seemed like the other way around since Matt was the one looking after Vicki, due to their mother not being around. Vicki started to act erratically after she turned into a vampire, which made Matt think she was on drugs. After Vicki's death, Matt believed that she had run away, until her body was found. In season three, Matt was able to see Vicki after Esther performed a spell and tried to bring her back, but he had to learn to accept her death. When Matt temporarily died in season five, he saw Vicki and tried to keep hold of her, but she reminded him that she was already dead and let go. Tyler Lockwood Matt and Tyler are best friends, and have known each other for a long time. They were both on the football team, and they both also fell in love with Caroline, which strained their friendship for a while. In season six, Matt decides to join the police academy, and gets Tyler to join him. However, due to circumstances thanks to Kai Parker's influence during Season Six, Matt and Tyler were forced to say goodbye to each other temporarily while Tyler figured out his newfound werewolf life. Also, Matt moved up in the ranks of law enforcement due to the rising supernatural occurrences in Mystic Falls. They still remain close friends however. Elena Gilbert Elena and Matt had a relationship throughout most of high school, but she had broken up with him after her parent's deaths. At first, it was evident that he still loved her and was jealous of her new relationship with Stefan Salvatore, but they remained good friends throughout the rest of the series. When Rebekah drove Elena and Matt off of Wickery Bridge, she had Stefan save him before herself. When Elena lost her humanity, Matt was the person who had flipped her switch after Damon had snapped his neck while he was wearing the Gilbert ring. When Matt said his goodbye to Elena after she was put into a sleeping coma, she told him that she hopes he spends his life fighting for people like himself: human, loyal, and kind. Caroline Forbes Matt and Caroline have known each other since first grade. At first, he didn't like her very much, but they began to grow closer and started a romantic relationship. Their relationship was strained due to Caroline's frequent jealousy over Elena due to her and Matt's history. They start to drift apart after Caroline becomes a vampire, and also after she starts getting closer to his best friend, Tyler. They break up, and although they aren't together anymore, they still remain good friends. Rebekah Mikaelson Matt and Rebekah's relationship was strained at first, especially after Rebekah drove him and Elena off of Wickery Bridge, killing Elena and almost killing Matt. She makes several attempts to make amends with Matt, but he's cold towards her. At Prom, she dances with Matt and tells him that she wants to be everything that he is, which is beautifully human. She tries to be a better person and continually tries to prove it to Matt. After they are in a dangerous predicament with Alexander, Rebekah takes Matt's place on the trigger that sets off explosives. She kisses him and tells him to run so he won't miss graduation. She vamp speeds away, and the bomb detonates, but neither of them are hurt. She then goes off with Matt, and they spend 3 months traveling together before she joins her brother in New Orleans. Other Relationships *Jeremy and Matt (Best Friends/Were Roommates/Former Allies) *Matt and Bonnie (Close Friends/Allies) *Matt and April (Distant Friends) *Jeremy, Matt and Tyler (Best Friends/Former Allies) *Matt and Nadia (Ex-Fling/Former Allies) *Katherine and Matt (Former Enemies/Allies) *Matt and Enzo (Enemies/Frenemies) *Damon and Matt (Frenemies/Former Enemies) *Matt and Penny (Former Fiancée/Former Allies) *Matt and Rayna (Former Allies) *Matt and Stefan (Former Friends/Enemies) *Sarah Nelson and Matt (Distant Friends) *Matt, Nora and Mary Louise (Enemies) *Matt and Alaric (Former Allies/Friends) Appearances Season One *''Pilot *''The Night of the Comet *''Friday Night Bites *''You're Undead to Me *''Lost Girls'' *''Haunted'' *''162 Candles'' *''History Repeating'' *''The Turning Point'' *''Unpleasantville'' *''Fool Me Once'' *''A Few Good Men'' *''There Goes the Neighborhood'' *''Let the Right One In'' *''Under Control'' *''Isobel'' *''Founder's Day'' Season Two *''The Return'' *''Brave New World'' *''Bad Moon Rising'' *''Plan B'' *''Masquerade'' *''The Sacrifice'' *''By the Light of the Moon'' *''The Descent'' *''Daddy Issues'' *''Crying Wolf'' *''The House Guest'' *''Know Thy Enemy'' *''The Last Dance'' *''The Last Day'' *''The Sun Also Rises'' Season Three *''The Birthday'' *''The Hybrid'' *''The Reckoning'' *''Smells Like Teen Spirit'' *''Ghost World'' *''Homecoming'' *''Our Town'' *''Bringing Out The Dead'' *''Dangerous Liaisons'' *''1912'' *''The Murder of One'' *''Heart of Darkness'' *''Do Not Go Gentle'' *''Before Sunset'' *''The Departed'' Season Four *''Growing Pains'' *''Memorial'' *''The Rager'' *''The Killer'' *''We All Go a Little Mad Sometimes'' *''My Brother’s Keeper'' *''O Come, All Ye Faithful'' *''After School Special'' *''Catch Me If You Can'' *''A View to a Kill'' *''Stand By Me'' *''Bring It On'' *''Pictures of You'' *''She's Come Undone'' *''The Walking Dead'' *''Graduation'' Season Five *''I Know What You Did Last Summer'' *''True Lies'' *''Original Sin'' (Gets partially controlled by passenger Gregor) *''For Whom the Bell Tolls'' (Partially controlled by passenger Gregor) *''Dead Man on Campus'' (Partially controlled by passenger Gregor) *''Fifty Shades of Grayson'' *''The Devil Inside'' *''Total Eclipse of the Heart'' *''No Exit'' *''Gone Girl'' *''While You Were Sleeping'' *''Rescue Me'' *''Resident Evil'' *''Man on Fire'' *''What Lies Beneath'' *''Promised Land'' *''Home'' Season Six *''I'll Remember'' *''Yellow Ledbetter'' *''Welcome to Paradise'' *''Black Hole Sun'' *''The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get'' *''Do You Remember the First Time?'' *''I Alone'' *''Christmas Through Your Eyes'' *''Woke Up With a Monster'' *''The Day I Tried To Live'' *''Stay'' *''Let Her Go'' *''I Could Never Love Like That'' *''Because'' *''I'd Leave My Happy Home For You'' *''I'll Wed You in the Golden Summertime'' *''I'm Thinking Of You All The While'' Season Seven *''Day One of Twenty-Two Thousand, Give or Take'' *''Never Let Me Go'' *''I Carry Your Heart With Me'' *''Best Served Cold'' *''Mommie Dearest'' *''Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me'' *''Hell Is Other People'' *''Things We Lost in the Fire'' *''Postcards from the Edge'' *''Moonlight on the Bayou'' *''I Would for You'' *''Days of Future Past'' *''I Went to the Woods'' *''One Way or Another'' (Mentioned) *''Kill 'Em All'' *''Requiem for a Dream'' *''Gods and Monsters'' Season Eight *''An Eternity of Misery'' *''Coming Home Was a Mistake'' *''Detoured On Some Random Backwoods Path to Hell'' *''The Next Time I Hurt Somebody, It Could Be You'' The Originals Season One *''House of the Rising Son'' (Mentioned) The Originals Season Three *''For the Next Millennium'' (Indirectly mentioned) *''Behind the Black Horizon'' }} Episode Absence Season One *In Season 1, Matt doesn't appear in 5 episodes: **''Family Ties'' **''Bloodlines'' **''Children of the Damned **''Miss Mystic Falls'' **''Blood Brothers'' Season Two *In Season 2, Matt doesn't appear in 7 episodes: **''Memory Lane'' **''Kill or Be Killed'' **''Rose'' **''Katerina'' **''The Dinner Party'' **''Klaus'' **''As I Lay Dying'' Season Three *In Season 3, Matt doesn't appear in 7 episodes: **''The End of the Affair'' **''Disturbing Behavior'' **''Ordinary People'' **''The New Deal'' **''The Ties That Bind'' **''All My Children'' **''Break On Through'' Season Four *In Season 4, Matt doesn't appear in 6 episodes: **''We’ll Always Have Bourbon Street'' **''Into the Wild'' **''Down the Rabbit Hole'' **''Because the Night'' **''American Gothic'' **''The Originals'' Season Five *In Season 5, Matt doesn't appear in 4 episodes. **''Monster's Ball'' **''Handle with Care'' **''Death and the Maiden'' **''The Cell'' Season Six *In Season 6, Matt doesn't appear in 5 episodes: **''The World Has Turned and Left Me Here'' **''Fade Into You'' **''Prayer For the Dying'' **''The Downward Spiral'' **''A Bird in a Gilded Cage'' Season Seven *In Season 7, Matt doesn't appear in 4 episodes: **''Age of Innocence'' **''Live Through This'' **''Cold as Ice'' **''This Woman's Work'' **''Somebody That I Used to Know'' Season Eight *In Season 8, Matt doesn't appear in 3 episodes so far: **''Hello, Brother'' **''Today Will Be Different'' **''You Decided That I Was Worth Saving'' }} Novels In the novels, Matt's surname is Honeycutt, not "Donovan", and like the series, he is Elena's ex-boyfriend. Vicki is also not his sister in the novels. Matt Honeycutt's father is dead and his mother is only briefly mentioned and is completely dissimilar to Kelly Donovan. Name *'Matt' is a masculine name of Hebrew origin. It is from the Hebrew מַתִּתְיָהוּ ''(Mattiyahu) which means ''"Gift of Yaweh". ''Matt is a variation or short form for Matthew. In the English meaning, it means "Gift of God". *'Donovan''' is an anglicized form of the Gaelic Ó Donndubháin. Trivia Quotes ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- Tropes *Elena's former boyfriend, hasn't given up hope yet - which makes him a Dogged Nice Guy . *He is pretty much a Generic Guy , with no special qualities - except being human . *Of course, he just wants his beloved to be happy , so he forgives Elena for ditching him and tries to be friends with Stefan. *His life sucks most of the times: We don't even know if he knew his father ;his mother is an Alcoholic who left him for a boyfriend in Florida; his sister Vicki was a drug addict who got turned into a Vampire by Damon because he was bored then staked by Stefan. Ah, and Vicki came back as a ghost. She was persuaded by Esther to try and kill Elena! *Like most of the main cast, he even died once. But he was revived. *By Season Four he is the only one in the cast member to remain human, so he is the Token Human, which in this case is also a Token Minority. *He's often called as The Quarterback, or Matty (Which he is affectionately called by Vicki). * He's Rebekah's Morality Pet *With April and Meredith he is part of Team Normal - the humans without powers that help the super-powered heroes. References Gallery See also Category:Characters Category:Main Characters Category:Male Characters Category:Protagonists Category:Mystic Falls Residents Category:Donovan Family Category:Humans Category:Medium Category:Mystic Falls Gang Category:The Vampire Diaries Season One Characters Category:The Vampire Diaries Season Two Characters Category:The Vampire Diaries Season Three Characters Category:The Vampire Diaries Season Four Characters Category:The Vampire Diaries Season Five Characters Category:The Vampire Diaries Season Six Characters Category:The Vampire Diaries Season Seven Characters Category:The Originals Characters Category:The Originals Season Three Characters Category:Antagonists Category:Vampire Diaries Characters Category:Vampire Hunters Category:The Vampire Diaries Season Eight Characters